Meghan Markle appears elegant in $2,150 costume on Colombia Tour

Meghan Markle looked elegant as she donned a colourful printed dress as she and Prince Harry watched folk dancers on the first day of their Colombian tour. 

The Duchess of Sussex, 43, who lives with the Duke and their two children, Prince Archie, five, and Princess Lilibet, three, in their $14 million Montecito home, has joined her husband for a four-day visit to the South American nation. 

The former royal couple were treated to a colourful tribal dance at the Delia Zapata National Centre for the Arts.

Meghan chatted to vice president Francia Márquez and pointed to some of the costumes, before shaking hands with the dancers at the end of the performance. 

She looked stylish as she changed into her second look of the tour – a colourful maxi dress by Johanna Ortiz, who has Colombian heritage. 

The Duchess opted for the $2,150 burgundy Navajo Weaver Metallic Tweed Maxi Dress, and styled her hair into loose waves after her earlier up-do. 

She wowed in the look, which boasted a slit up the thigh and featured a stylish cut-out in the middle. 

Though the dress itself appeared to be new, Meghan wore a very similar look on her ‘quasi-royal’ tour of Africa back in May, wearing a £2,275 striped sundress also by Johanna Ortiz.  

She kept the same jewellery from earlier in the day, but also appeared to add her $12,800 Cartier ‘juste un clou’ necklace, which she has sported many times before. 

She gave a sweet nod to the hosting country, as the dress is made in Colombia itself. 

It’s also practical – featuring removable ruffle sleeves and being cool for the climate, as well as stylish in nature. 

Meghan was beaming as she watched the performance, with the couple holding hands and showing much affection.  

Earlier, Meghan proved her fashion prowess once again today as she stepped out in Colombia alongside Prince Harry to begin their four-day tour of the South American nation.

She put on a stylish display in a £596 collared vest from New York-based brand Veronica Beard.

Looking effortlessly elegant, the mother-of-two teamed her sleeveless, buttoned garment with matching navy, ankle-grazing trousers from the designer, priced at £349.33.

Cinched at the waist to flatter the Duchess’ slender figure, the smart ensemble was paired with black Manolo Blahnik high heels and a cream $4,700 handbag from Italian company Loro Piana.

Harry and Meghan were met in the capital Bogota by Colombia’s vice president Francia Marquez and her husband Rafael Yerney Pinillo on Thursday.

They spent around half an hour at the vice president’s residence, where they exchanged welcome gifts and were offered tea, coffee and traditional pandebono – Colombian cheese bread.

The Sussexes are being given a full security detail throughout their visit alongside Ms Marquez, who had invited the couple to travel to Colombia for what has been dubbed a DIY royal tour.

Meghan’s fashionable first look – available in both navy and red – is labelled as a ‘fashion-forward take on the vest’, according to the brand’s website. 

‘The Orlinda is defined by a collared halter silhouette while tortoiseshell buttons down the centre and on the pockets offer decorative touches. Pair with the matching Arte pant for a bold summer set,’ suggested the site. 

Meghan – sporting a glamorous makeup look and her hair scraped back into an elegant up-do – also wore the Arte Pants from the brand, which cut off above the ankle and feature pockets. 

Adding a touch of glitz to her ensemble, the Duchess sported her Lorraine Schwartz ‘Against Evil Eye’ bracelet, thought to cost a cool £15,011.84 ($18,815).

She teamed her look with a $4,700 (£3,653) handbag made from calfskin and created by Italian brand Loro Piana.

Holding the Loom bag L32 in one hand, her other held onto Harry’s hand. The prince looked smart in a navy suit paired with a light blue shirt. 

Harry and Meghan were invited to the nation after the country’s vice president saw them on Netflix and was ‘moved’ by their story.

Francia Márquez made the revelation as she briefed media ahead of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex‘s arrival for their four day trip.

They will take on the cities of Bogotá before heading off to Cartagena and Cali as part of a ‘cultural and social’ visit.

Speaking to media Ms Marquez – who continually referred to the couple as ‘Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex’, said she asked Meghan to visit Colombia last year, but the visit had been delayed due to other commitments.

Ms Marquez, who has been accused of using helicopters like taxis, was asked by a local journalist why she had invited the couple to Colombia.

She replied: ‘I learned their story through Netflix and I was moved by it. Meghan is a woman who deserves to come to the country and tell her story.’

The Harry & Meghan documentary was released on Netflix in two parts across December 2022, detailing their courtship and decision to step back from a working life in the royal family. It has a 46 per cent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Ms Marquez added the visit had been on the cards for a year after she invited Meghan to the country a year ago on July 25, International Afro-descendant Women’s Day. 

Meghan had made much of her African descent during her and Harry’s visit to Nigeria in May this year – their first ‘in all but name’ royal tour together. 

Ms Marquez added: ‘Last year we held a meeting on July 25, the day of Afro-descendant women. We wanted to invite Meghan, an Afro-descendant woman, to that meeting so she could share her experiences.

‘We sent her a letter inviting her, and she replied saying that she couldn’t come, but that she really wanted to get to know the country. Since then, we have been working for a year for this visit.’

Ms Marquez said it was an opportunity to show the couple the ‘best of the country’ although there has been little coverage in local media ahead of the visit.

Nigeria, like Colombia, is seen as a high risk destination in parts by the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office.

Officials have kept the itinerary a closely guarded secret as parts of the country are described as ‘best avoided’ due to ongoing internal conflicts. The cities they plan to visit – Bogotá, Cali and Cartagena – are viewed as reasonably safe.

On Wednesday further details of the trip were revealed by US women’s fashion monthly Harpers Bazaar which is highly supportive of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. The magazine’s reporter Bianca Betancourt is travelling with the couple.

According to her report the couple will meet with local students, teachers and industry leaders, who ‘make up the vibrant and expansive heritage of the South American country’. 

It added: ‘Their agenda will focus on key aspects of The Archewell Foundation’s priorities and lifelong philanthropic endeavours for the duke and duchess, including highlighting the military community and female empowerment.

‘Apart from visiting local schools, where the pair will host insight sessions and discuss the importance of digital literacy and mental health with today’s youth.’

The Duke and Duchess are also expected attend local performances that celebrate Colombian music, theatre, and dance in between other official engagements — such as Harry meeting with the Invictus Games’ Team Colombia and Meghan sharing time with some of the country’s leading female entrepreneurs.

Colombian media reported that they will spend two days in the capital Bogota before travelling to Cali and Cartagena where they will visit the first ‘free town’ for Africans as well as attend a music festival.

The pair are due to be shown around the important sanctuary of San Basilio de Palenque on Saturday.

The small town, which has a population of around 3,500 , was one of the walled communities known as palenques which were founded by escaped slaves as a refuge in the seventeenth century, leading to the enclave developing a rich and unique culture, influenced heavily by the population’s African heritage.

In 2008 the town and its cultural space were declared an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

Part of the recognition is linked to the fact the palenque language, called palenquero, is the only Spanish based creole language in Latin America. It is only spoken by around 3,000 people.

Most of the other so-called palenque secret fort villages were eventually found and destroyed by the Spanish, but San Basilio de Palenque, which is a popular day trip for tourists from Cartagena, survived.

The founding father was Domingo Benkos Bioho, originally from the Bijago islands of Guinea-Bissau in West Africa.

He was captured by Portuguese slave traders in the late 16th century. Mystery surrounds the history of his escape from Cartagena, one of the main hubs for the slave trade in Colombia in the seventeenth century.

Spanish authorities seeking to eliminate the threat he posed after he organised a network of palenques and coordinated raids against Spanish-run plantations to free more slaves, captured him during a visit to Cartagena after tricking him into returning to the city and executed him. 

A statue of Benkos Bioho stands in the centre of San Basilio de Palenque.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s will also visit a music festival in Cali called the Petronio Alvarez Festival on Sunday according to city mayor Alejandro Eder.

It takes place every August at a sports complex called Unidad Deportiva Alberto Galinda.

Since its foundation in 1997 it has evolved into a significant celebration of Afro-Colombian music and culture in Latin America.

It was aimed at uniting artists from Colombia’s Pacific coast and giving them a platform to express and celebrate their rich cultural heritage.

Speaking at a tourism congress earlier this month Cali mayor Mr Eder said: ‘They are going to come to Cali and spend a day in the city.

‘They’re going to visit the Petronio Alvarez Festival in the city and they’re also going to visit other social initiatives.’

The trip will allow Meghan, who celebrated her 43rd birthday last Sunday, to show off her fluent Spanish which she learned at private school in LA and perfected at the US Embassy in Argentina.

But for many Colombians, the Sussexes’ visit is viewed as little more than a cynical attempt by a failing Left-wing government to use the glamorous couple as ‘political pawns’ to divert attention from a series of scandals that have engulfed the regime.

A prominent Bogota lawyer told the Mail on Sunday: ‘I’m sure Meghan and Harry mean well, but everyone here is talking about how obviously they are being manipulated.

‘Of course, their star-power will be used to bring attention to poor people and certain areas of culture in Colombia… but the reality is the Colombian government has been drowning in scandal since it came in two years ago. They need something to appease people at home and make them look good abroad.’